I don't understand why fares for non-stop flights between SYD and SFO would be more expensive than going via LAX. In business class, there's about a $1000 difference. The cheapest fare will give you 1 non-stop either SYD-SFO or SFO-SYD and then the other flight will go via LAX. But going via LAX both ways doesn't make it any cheaper either. It doesn't sound very cost-effective to me. Can anyone explain the logic behind this?